Seagate Tech Ord Shs Beats but Guides Lower

Seagate Tech Ord Shs (STX) reported 1st Quarter September 2018 earnings of $1.70 per share on revenue of $3.0 billion. The consensus earnings estimate was $1.55 per share on revenue of $3.0 billion. The Earnings Whisper number was $1.55 per share. Revenue grew 13.6% on a year-over-year basis.

The company said during its conference call it expects second quarter revenue of $2.70 billion to $2.75 billion. The current consensus revenue estimate is $3.02 billion for the quarter ending December 31, 2018.

“In the September quarter, we achieved strong financial results in revenue, profitability and cash flow, reflecting solid execution and positive demand for our products across multiple markets. By delivering competitive cost-effective mass storage solutions, Seagate is a crucial supplier in supporting the Data Age digital transformations that are happening across the storage marketplace. We believe our deep storage industry expertise, leading technology portfolio and focused execution will continue to drive long-term success for the company and deliver value to our shareholders,” said Dave Mosley, Seagate’s chief executive officer.

Quarterly Financial Results

GAAP

Non-GAAP

FQ1 2019

FQ1 2018

FQ1 2019

FQ1 2018

Revenue ($M)

$2,991

$2,632

$2,992

$2,632

Gross Margin

30.5%

28.0%

31.0%

29.0%

Net Income ($M)

$450

$181

$496

$279

Diluted Earnings Per Share

$1.54

$0.62

$1.70

$0.96

In the first quarter, the Company generated $587 million in cash flow from operations and $410 million in free cash flow, paid cash dividends of $181 million and repurchased 3 million ordinary shares for $150 million. Cash and cash equivalents totaled $1.9 billion at the end of the quarter.

For a detailed reconciliation of GAAP to non-GAAP results, see accompanying financial tables.

Seagate has issued a Supplemental Financial Information document, which is available on Seagate’s Investors Relations website at www.seagate.com/investors.

Quarterly Cash Dividend

The Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) has approved a quarterly cash dividend of $0.63 per share, which will be payable on January 2, 2019 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on December 19, 2018. The payment of any future quarterly dividends will be at the discretion of the Board and will be dependent upon Seagate’s financial position, results of operations, available cash, cash flow, capital requirements and other factors deemed relevant by the Board.

Investor Communications

Seagate management will hold a public webcast today at 6:00 a.m. Pacific Time that can be accessed on its Investor Relations website at www.seagate.com/investors. During today’s webcast, the Company will provide an outlook for its second fiscal quarter of 2019, including key underlying assumptions.

An archived audio webcast of this event will be available on Seagate’s Investors Relations website at www.seagate.com/investors shortly following the event conclusion.

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, each as amended, including, in particular, statements about the Company’s plans, strategies and prospects, financial projections, expectations regarding market demand and the Company’s products, shifts in technology, the Company’s ability to meet market and industry expectations and the effects of these future trends and expectations on the Company’s business and shareholder value and dividend issuance plans for the fiscal quarter ending December 28, 2018 and beyond. These statements identify prospective information and may include words such as “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “projects,” “should,” “may,” “will,” or the negative of these words, variations of these words and comparable terminology. These forward-looking statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date of this report and are based on management’s current views and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are conditioned upon and also involve a number of known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those anticipated by these forward-looking statements. Such risks, uncertainties, and other factors may be beyond the Company’s control and may pose a risk to the Company’s operating and financial condition. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: items that may be identified during its financial statement closing process that cause adjustments to the estimates included in this report; the uncertainty in global economic and political conditions; the impact of the variable demand and adverse pricing environment for storage products; the Company’s ability to successfully qualify, manufacture and sell its storage products in increasing volumes on a cost-effective basis and with acceptable quality; the impact of competitive product announcements; the Company’s ability to achieve projected cost savings in connection with restructuring plans and consolidation of manufacturing activities; possible excess industry supply with respect to particular storage products and competing alternative storage technology solutions; the impact of trade barriers imposed by the U.S. government and potential corresponding actions by other countries in which the Company conducts its business; disruptions to its supply chain or production capabilities; unexpected advances in competing technologies or changes in market trends; the development and introduction of products based on new technologies and expansion into new data storage markets; the Company’s ability to effectively manage its debt obligations and comply with certain covenants in its credit facilities with respect to financial ratios and financial condition tests; currency fluctuations that may impact the Company’s margins, international sales and results of operations; cyber-attacks or other data breaches that disrupt the Company’s operations or result in the dissemination of proprietary or confidential information and cause reputational harm; cybersecurity threats and vulnerabilities associated with the Company’s infrastructure updates to its information technology systems; and fluctuations in interest rates. Information concerning risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause results to differ materially from the expectations described in this press release is contained in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on August 3, 2018, the “Risk Factors” section of which is incorporated into this press release by reference, and other documents filed with or furnished to the SEC. These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s views as of any subsequent date and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date they were made, except as required by applicable law.

The inclusion of Seagate’s website address in this press release is intended to be an inactive textual reference only and not an active hyperlink. The information contained in, or that can be accessed through, Seagate’s website and social media channels are not part of this press release.

SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY PLC

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In millions)

(Unaudited)

September 28, 2018

June 29,2018(a)

ASSETS

Current assets:

Cash and cash equivalents

$

1,942

$

1,853

Accounts receivable, net

1,202

1,184

Inventories

1,116

1,053

Other current assets

263

220

Total current assets

4,523

4,310

Property, equipment and leasehold improvements, net

1,789

1,792

Investment in debt security

1,259

1,275

Goodwill

1,237

1,237

Other intangible assets, net

169

188

Deferred income taxes

416

417

Other assets, net

185

191

Total Assets

$

9,578

$

9,410

LIABILITIES AND EQUITY

Current liabilities:

Accounts payable

$

1,776

$

1,728

Accrued employee compensation

174

253

Accrued warranty

110

112

Current portion of long-term debt

499

499

Accrued expenses

616

598

Total current liabilities

3,175

3,190

Long-term accrued warranty

122

125

Long-term accrued income taxes

11

10

Other non-current liabilities

102

100

Long-term debt, less current portion

4,322

4,320

Total Liabilities

7,732

7,745

Total Equity

1,846

1,665

Total Liabilities and Equity

$

9,578

$

9,410

(a) The information in this column was derived from the Company’s audited Consolidated Balance Sheet as of June 29, 2018.

SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY PLC

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In millions, except per share data)

(Unaudited)

For the Three Months Ended

September 28, 2018

September 29, 2017

Revenue

$

2,991

$

2,632

Cost of revenue

2,078

1,896

Product development

266

263

Marketing and administrative

115

145

Amortization of intangibles

6

22

Restructuring and other, net

23

51

Total operating expenses

2,488

2,377

Income from operations

503

255

Interest income

24

7

Interest expense

(58

)

(61

)

Other, net

(1

)

(13

)

Other expense, net

(35

)

(67

)

Income before income taxes

468

188

Provision for income taxes

18

7

Net income

$

450

$

181

Net income per share:

Basic

$

1.57

$

0.62

Diluted

1.54

0.62

Number of shares used in per share calculations:

Basic

287

290

Diluted

292

292

Cash dividends declared per ordinary share

$

0.63

$

0.63

SEAGATE TECHNOLOGY PLC

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In millions)

(Unaudited)

For the Three Months Ended

September 28, 2018

September 29, 2017

OPERATING ACTIVITIES

Net income

$

450

$

181

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:

Depreciation and amortization

134

161

Share-based compensation

18

32

Deferred income taxes

2

(3

)

Other non-cash operating activities, net

(18

)

1

Changes in operating assets and liabilities:

Accounts receivable, net

(9

)

(10

)

Inventories

(66

)

(32

)

Accounts payable

119

(30

)

Accrued employee compensation

(79

)

(87

)

Accrued expenses, income taxes and warranty

45

16

Other assets and liabilities

(9

)

8

Net cash provided by operating activities

587

237

INVESTING ACTIVITIES

Acquisition of property, equipment and leasehold improvements

(177

)

(124

)

Proceeds from sale of properties previously classified as held for sale

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the beginning of the period

1,857

2,543

Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at the end of the period

$

1,945

$

2,289

Use of non-GAAP financial information

The Company uses non-GAAP measures of adjusted revenue, gross margin, operating expenses, net income and diluted earnings per share which are adjusted from results based on GAAP to exclude certain expenses, gains and losses. These non-GAAP financial measures may be provided to enhance the user’s overall understanding of the Company’s current financial performance and its prospects for the future. Specifically, the Company believes non-GAAP results provide useful information to both management and investors as these non-GAAP results exclude certain expenses, gains and losses that it believes are not indicative of its core operating results and because it is similar to the approach used in connection with the financial models and estimates published by financial analysts who follow the Company.

These non-GAAP results are some of the measurements management uses to assess the Company’s performance, allocate resources and plan for future periods. Reported non-GAAP results should only be considered as supplemental to results prepared in accordance with GAAP, and not considered as a substitute for, or superior to, GAAP results. These non-GAAP measures may differ from the non-GAAP measures reported by other companies in its industry.

These adjustments relate to sales of certain discontinued products or changes in sales provision for discontinued products. These adjustments are inconsistent in amount and frequency and are excluded in the non-GAAP measures as these adjustments are not indicative of the underlying ongoing operating performance.

These expenses are excluded in the non-GAAP measure due to its inconsistent in amount and frequency and are excluded to facilitate a more meaningful evaluation of the Company’s current operating performance and comparison to its past periods operating performance.

Amortization of acquired intangible assets

The Company records expense from amortization of intangible assets that were acquired in connection with its business combinations over their estimated useful lives. Such charges are inconsistent in size and are significantly impacted by the timing and magnitude of the Company’s acquisitions. Consequently, these expenses are excluded in the non-GAAP measures to facilitate a more meaningful evaluation of its current operating performance and comparison to its past periods operating performance.

Other charges

The other charges primarily include write-off of certain discontinued inventory and expense related to disposed business. These charges are inconsistent in amount and frequency and are excluded in the non-GAAP measures to facilitate a more meaningful evaluation of its current operating performance and comparison to its past periods operating performance.

Restructuring and other, net

Restructuring charges and other, net are costs associated with restructuring plans that are primarily related to costs associated with reduction in the Company’s workforce, exiting certain facilities and other related costs. These also exclude charges or gains from sale of properties classified as held-for-sale. These costs or benefits do not reflect the Company’s ongoing operating performance and consequently are excluded from the non-GAAP measures to facilitate a more meaningful evaluation of its current operating performance and comparison to its past periods operating performance.

Strategic investment losses, (gains) or impairment recognized

From time to time, the Company incurs losses or gains from strategic investment accounted under equity method of accounting or records impairments charges which are not considered as part of its ongoing operating performance. The resulting expense or gain is inconsistent in amount and frequency and consequently are excluded from the non-GAAP measures to facilitate a more meaningful evaluation of its current operating performance and comparison to its past periods operating performance.

Income tax adjustments

Provision for income taxes represents the tax effects of non-GAAP adjustments determined using a hybrid with and without method and effective tax rate for the applicable adjustment and jurisdiction. It also includes a provisional tax benefit for the re-measurement of the Company's U.S. deferred tax assets at the lower 21% tax rate resulting from the U.S. Tax Cuts and Jobs Act enacted on December 22, 2017.